SELLING GARDEN TIMBERS
IT’S S
SHOWTIME
As Britain prepares for its annual round of flower shows, keen gardeners are preparing themselves for the long summer ahead.
What has the timber sector got to offer this summer?
oftwood decking is still a strong market for merchants but many different types of solid wood and composite decking are now available to freshen the merchant offering and attract higher value customers, as John Dowd, Specialised Product Category Director at International Timber, comments: “There will always be a market for softwood decking, but people are now becoming more discerning in their choices. Composite decking already has a significant presence in the UK and is showing ever- increasing growth across wider markets, for example in Germany.”
New opportunities
“New options and opportunities are also coming into the market, such as decking made from Accoya, with all the durability and aesthetic benefits which that modified material represents,” International’s John Dowd states. “Hardwood decking is seeing a resurgence in popularity,” says Richard Mosson, Group Decking & Cladding Manager at James Latham Timber. “Hardwoods are more dimensionally stable and durable, especially thermally-treated hardwoods.”
14 / May 2019
Yet it is wood-plastic composite decking which is increasingly stealing a march on its rivals, with numerous products available on the market, through not all of them high quality, as Latham’s Richard Mosson confirms: “Composite decking is here to stay and is gradually eating away at softwood’s share of the market. Largely a price-driven market, cheap Chinese and Eastern European products are gradually losing favour due to their relatively high failure rate. Some larger DIY sheds have had to recall a lot of composite decking, for example, when complaints were raised.
“Cheaper products are made from PVC mixed with wood fibre,” he continues. “To make them less slippery their surface is abraded, allowing water ingress and exposure of the wood fibre. Leaves, bird droppings and barbecue grease are therefore more likely to stain the abraded surface. Merchants should aim to stock a better quality product which is fully encapsulated and sealed, to protect their customers and to protect their own reputations,” he advises.
Stocking composites
Opportunities are such that the ability to hold stock of composite decking now confers benefits to bottom line, as Lee Heitzman, Trex Area Sales Manager at Arbor Forest Products, explains: “Composite decking sales have risen substantially in recent years and merchants now
Picture:Arbor Forest Products Picture: International Timber
understand there is a need to offer a composite product alongside their traditional softwood decking. The ability to hold physical stocks of composite decking products rather than selling from samples is obviously a business benefit, enabling you to immediately answer sales enquiries before customers can decide to go elsewhere.
“At Arbor Forest, we now have coming up to 300 merchant stockists of our Trex composite decking around the country, and the number keeps growing,” Lee Heitzman affirms. “Offering a reliable high quality composite decking product creates a bond of trust with your customer, which then benefits other parts
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